The Hungarian subsidiary of the French Veolia Environnement, a global leader in environmental services, has acquired a minority stake in VízCoop Kft, a company providing water supply services in 19 small communities in southwest Hungary, the business daily Napi Gazdaság reported.

The value of the transaction has not been published, but the local municipalities said a strategic investor with a strong capital position is required to the development of the network. Two mayors told the paper that they considered the quality of the service as more important than the price of the water.